An important aspect when using a traditional muzzleloading or black powder firearm is to facilitate quick, reliable and consistent reloading of the firearm following discharge. As is conventionally known in the art, a desired volume of gunpowder propellent is supplied to either the muzzle end or the breech end of the barrel of a gun, depending on the design of the firearm. During loading of a muzzleloading firearm, the charge, the sabot and/or the patch (wad), if necessary, and the projectile, in that order, are all loaded through the discharging end of the barrel—sometimes the sabot and/or patch (wad) may be omitted. The contents are typically packed toward the breech end of the firearm using a ramrod to ensure a consistent loading and seating pressure of the propellant and the projectile and the seating reduces the chances of a potential over pressure situation in the barrel of the firearm because of an air gap forming between the propellant and the projectile.
As is well known in the art, the propellent was typically a loose granular gunpowder, e.g., a mixture of charcoal, potassium nitrate and sulfur. Early powders were dangerous to handle and tended to foul the bore of the firearm. That is, after one or more firings of the firearm, the user would typically have to clean the bore of the barrel using a device which scrapes or wipes the inner bore surface of the barrel. If such cleaning was not periodically performed or performed improperly, the interior bore of the barrel build-ups a layer of residue of unconsumed propellent and such residue can lead to corrosion and/or malfunctioning of the firearm and clogging of the ignition or flash channel. For a number of years, black powder was the only propellent used in muzzleloading firearms, and eventually black powder substitutes, such as those sold under the trade names PYRODEX, BLACK CANYON, CLEAN SHOT and AMERICAN PIONEER, are now commonly utilized. For at least the past 25 years, black powder and black powder substitutes have been pelletized to facilitate ease of loading of firearms.